Kent Film Club - Jay James (Thursday 27th June 2024)
This week Chris Deacy is joined in the studio by Jay James to discuss the films; The Long Good Friday, The Lost Boys, Legend, and A Star is Born.
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00:00Hello and welcome to Kent Film Club. I'm Chris DC and each week I'll be joined by
00:18a guest from Kent to dive deep into the impact certain films have had on their
00:22life. Each guest will reflect on the films which have meant the most to them
00:26over the years and every week there will be a Kent Film Trivia where we quiz you
00:31at home about a film that has a connection to the county. And now let me
00:35introduce you to my guest for this week. He is a model, actor, fight scene
00:40coordinator and has worked in multiple assistant director positions. He is Jay
00:46James. Welcome Jay. Hiya. Great to have you on. Now I don't know the films that
00:50you've selected in advance but I can see... Oh Gangster Classic, The Long Good
00:54Friday. Yes, one of my ultimate heroes, Mr. Bob Hoskins. First of all I'd like to
01:03say a little story about this. Bob Hoskins never actually went for the role.
01:06He was a driver for a friend who was a famous actor and the famous actor didn't
01:13have a license to drive in London so he said I'll drive you. So he drove him in
01:17his old car to this hotel. The casting guy was sitting there and Bob went off
01:24and he went no no, please sit down. You can stay. And Bob was like oh okay. Picked up a paper
01:29looking through and the whole time this casting director was
01:35interviewing this guy, this actor, he had one ear listening to Bob. You know
01:41just like in occasionally and talk about a cup of tea someone brought over and he
01:45just went stop there. He went would you say this? And Bob was like yeah. And he went
01:51what acting school do you go to? And Bob was like probably swearing and stuff. And the
01:57next minute he got the role and they still stay friends apparently but that
02:01was Bob Hoskins big film and that was all because he was a
02:05taxi driver for a friend. It's incredible isn't it? Because you think of all the
02:09different ways in which you can get into acting and they wanted a particular role
02:12but because I didn't know that story. When you think that in later years he
02:14did American films, he also won, he certainly got a BAFTA nomination
02:20maybe even an Oscar one for Mona Lisa. So along the way the
02:24career was born. So that's a lovely rags-to-riches story. Yeah exactly. I mean you know
02:28because you know he just went there as a taxi driver to help his friend out
02:33and all of a sudden he's got the lead role and opposite Helen Mirren who
02:38then was just really becoming in her own. But this is a great film. The
02:42reason why I chose this is because I like the styling. I think it's a sort of
02:46gangster film that could still do well today. It's got quite a good cast. I mean
02:52you think there's a future James Bond in it with Pierce Brosnan and he plays
02:57obviously the gangster. He plays a guy called Harold Shand who's a naughty boy
03:00from the East End. Helen Mirren is the gangster's mole, sort of like the
03:05posh girl from the West End. And then you got, it was
03:11actually set around the 1980s in London. So you obviously had the IRA. So you know
03:17it's very very politically, it was quite quite astute for its era. And the
03:23actual story follows Shand trying to go straight and trying to become a
03:27property mogul and in the East End he wanted to create an Olympic Park. So
03:32these years on we had the Olympics in London with the Stratford Park. He
03:36wanted to try and do something back then and he didn't actually have the funding
03:39for it. So he tried to invest, get the American Mafia to invest but in a
03:43non-gangster deal. The actual synopsis is every time it got close to doing the
03:47deal the IRA would bomb something and there was a mole in his gang and
03:53he did everything he could to sort out the mole. Yeah and so was this an
03:57adaptation? Remind me. So this was very fresh isn't it? It's a very fresh story.
04:01Very fresh story. It makes me think of Get Carter as well from a decade earlier.
04:04Again I mean it's always like you know like Kane, Hoskins, all these you know
04:08boy, boy, boy grew up on like Cowboy style. No this was just a really good
04:13screenplay and I went casting for it. I think they already had Helen Mirren
04:18because you know you'd need a bit of that. I think they had Piers as playing
04:21the IRA guy and then they had the unknown actor and Bob Hoskins was
04:27interviewed once by Michael Parkinson and back in the day I used to love all that and he
04:32still never gave away who it was. So I don't know who it was but Bob took it
04:37to his grave with him but I think that's a great story. He's in the
04:40posh hotel in London and he gets the role. And when you're watching this
04:44film do you sort of see that sort of gritty, that sort of sense? Is there a real
04:47sort of authenticity? I didn't know that backstory but now it all makes
04:50sense. Well I love all that you know and I didn't realise until about five, ten
04:55years ago Bob Hoskins once said if it wasn't probably for filming he probably
05:01would have been seen inside the prison. So he obviously had connections and he
05:05used all that for his little... because he's a little guy, he's a little stocky guy.
05:10He wasn't a big guy but all the scenes you know where he just walks
05:13around and you know his cockney sort of language it just comes from from his
05:19background and I thought he's a really underrated actor but I thought he's
05:23phenomenal. I'm guessing that you've watched this many times over the years.
05:28Have you sort of grown with the film? Has the film grown with you? Yeah I suppose it
05:31has because like I said so this was this came out in the 80s. I was born in 76 so
05:37I was only four years old but as I've got into watching film and then
05:44very fortunate enough to get into film and I tend to get typecast for certain
05:47roles, nothing like this. I look at these guys and think what can I take you know
05:51from... I'm going to name now like you're Bob Hoskins, you're Michael Caine, you're Ray
05:54Winston you know all the older guys that you look for and go they can
05:58make it work and I think he's the governor you know I really do. And he was
06:01very charming I reckon he's a very family man he loved his wife you know
06:04he was old-school he was very gentlemanly you know he never cursed in
06:08public and you look at him you think oh there's plenty more of them today.
06:11Absolutely. Wow well it's time now to move on to your second chosen film and
06:15Jay you've gone for The Lost Boys. Yeah completely different. Now everyone's
06:21famous for The Lost Boys probably around Halloween. I think this is
06:25Kiefer Sutherland's probably best role ever. It's sort of a black comedy. It's set
06:30around two boys, two teenagers and their newly divorced mum who plays
06:36Diane West who I thought was brilliant and they move to this fictional
06:43town called Santa Carla which is meant to be in California and it's a sort of
06:46place you can imagine freak shows, weird circuses you know very dark and they go
06:51and live with their gramps because their mum can't afford a house who's weird
06:55himself and short story is Kiefer Sutherland's the head of a biker gang he's got the
07:02girl he's got the looks and a guy Michael the guy Mr. Patrick in the film
07:09a guy called Michael sort of looks at him said he wants a bit of this and at
07:15this big fairground one night it's like a Halloween they've got all the fire
07:18the settings brilliant styling is great everyone's in leather it's really really
07:21good Kiefer Sutherland says all you got to do is keep up with my bike and he
07:25went I can't beat it so didn't ask you to beat it keep up with it be one of us
07:30so they drive like you know music soundtracks going and they get to this
07:33cave and everyone knows this scene they're sitting there having a Chinese
07:36and Kiefer Sutherland looks to Michael and says how's your maggots and Michael
07:44looks at him and goes maggots looks down they're maggots he drops drops them he
07:47goes oh my god and the love interest there is a lady she could play star and
07:52she's saying like no no she doesn't she knows what's gonna happen next and Kiefer
07:56Sutherland says come on have some red wine and star turns around says Michael
08:02don't don't impress anyone it's blood and he goes of course it is and drinks
08:07red wine the next day he's a vampire and that's what this film's all about it's a
08:12bit of a comedy it's all about these vampires and the twist at the end which
08:17is quite nice because Michael finds the strength to tackle the lead Kiefer
08:20Sutherland but I like it because it's all about like you've got your leather
08:24you've got your motorbikes the soundtracks I think the soundtracks are
08:28amazing and everyone when it's Halloween everyone brings out the Lost
08:33Boys soundtracks you know and I just think it's a good film well I'm thinking
08:36as well because you mentioned the hybrid nature yes but also Joel Schumacher
08:41he did so I mean I think of Falling Down he also did The Phantom of the Opera
08:45yeah I mean as Flatliners as well yes of course which I mean you think when this
08:50was made I think again in the 87 I think yeah Joel that was Joel's probably one of
08:54his first first you know and to knock out this but you're right he's gone on
08:57to do I mean like Phantom you know but yeah and he also has Corey Feldman in it
09:01you know I just thought it's a great film good feel good fact well that was
09:05the era wasn't it because you had the Brat Pack you had all the 80s Brat Pack
09:08all around that kind of era yeah you was and also like the new
09:11romantics are coming out you know so everyone was in like long you know guy
09:15line there and all that you know bleached blonde hair and mullets and I
09:18just thought the styling on this was brilliant and I think even today like I
09:22said about the other film this can still hold its weight today and there's not
09:26many films can stand the test of time you know they're ageless when I when I
09:30see a script and I read through 90 pages 100 pages I go oh yeah that's set
09:35straight away in the 70s or 80s but this could be set any year and works
09:39yeah because I know that it's shown certainly around Halloween often on the
09:43big screen because I've seen this on the small screen but I had a chance if I'd
09:46known that you were gonna pick it of course they're not that I would have
09:49watched it a couple of months ago but but do you think that this is something
09:52that you can watch in different formats it sounds like the same question I asked
09:55you with the long Good Friday that you've grown up with it yeah totally
09:58totally got grown up with it because motorbikes you know fairgrounds so all
10:03the things that I don't know it's like the devil the everything that you
10:08shouldn't want to like you like it's like a rebel and but it's got a nice
10:13ending to it it's just really a feel-good all the music like a foot
10:16tapper and I think it again anyone can watch it whether you're young or old and
10:20is it that I'm awful at sort of proselytizing trying to say to people
10:24you must watch this film because but it sounds like that you you obviously it's
10:28impacted on you personally but I'm guessing that there are lots of other
10:32people that you know who are big fans of this as well that you grew up with
10:34totally I mean a lot of cousins my sister and I've been a bit of a bully
10:40I've told people to go watch this you know if I had to pick three best films
10:44this would be one of them and you know no matter what my favorite films are
10:47this was being it because I just think you watch it whether it's Halloween or
10:51Christmas and you know you're there and you just escape for 90 minutes you can
10:55escape and I still think Kiefer did an amazing job in this I have to ask when
11:00did you last see this when did I last see it oh my god I probably last saw it
11:06this is pretty sad right about September last year I probably checked into it
11:12can't get on DVD so I just I just whack it in but yeah it's a great film it's
11:18one of those films isn't it that you one of those go-to films you just you know
11:21there's a moment for it completely if you're not if I'm on a down day or of
11:25weather I'll just put on yeah fantastic all right well that's about all the time
11:29we have for this first half of the show however before we go to the break we
11:33have a Kent film trivia question for you at home which novel turned film shot in
11:40the Chatham Historic Dockyard was it a miserable a be the perks of being a
11:46wallflower or see Anna Karenina we'll reveal the answer right after this break
11:53don't go away
11:59you
12:05hello and welcome back to Kent Film Club just before the ad break we asked you at
12:10home a Kent film trivia question which novel turned film shot in the Chatham
12:16Historic Dockyard I asked was it a miserable a be the perks of being a
12:20wallflower or see Anna Karenina and now I can reveal to you that the answer was
12:24in fact a lame is four different sections of the dockyard were utilized
12:29for scenes throughout the film did you get the answer right well it is time now
12:35to move Jay on to your next chosen film and you've gone for legend legend yes I
12:42think it's the I just I love this film I've seen it 20 times and it came out
12:52not that long ago really in retrospect two reasons why I picked this I love
12:56anything that's true to life and I'm a massive fan of Tom Hardy but I think
13:01what why this is pretty one of his best films in my opinion I don't think the
13:05professionals received it as well as he did because they don't like to glorify
13:08crime especially true crime but he played Ronnie and Reggie to a phenomenal
13:12level the intensity and it even those that knew them old guys now said he got
13:17it so right with their personalities and the way he did that yeah right they used
13:21camera trickery and they used body doubles at this time but he still had to
13:24play the two against a green screen now take it from me that's hard I can I
13:29can't do it it's just me let I'm trying to play two guys two brothers but he got
13:32the chemistry right the twins chemistry he got the I don't know he just got
13:36everything right and the bit in the beginning the intro when they're sitting
13:40as a in the back of a seat of a car that's being chauffeured by another
13:44gangster and the narration over that which is played by Francis Craig which
13:50is Reggie's wife and she narrates the narration is about two minutes and I'll
13:56tell you what sets the scene because she tells how he he could have been a legit
14:01businessman and a playboy Prince of the East End but because he has so much
14:06loyalty for Ron the guy with the glasses it was always gonna end one way and he
14:12wouldn't he wouldn't be disloyal he well and that's I think to the to this dying
14:16day he never once had a bad word about Ron but Ron was his downfall but but
14:22also in a film like this and also when you've got the say you know the same
14:25actor playing more than one role it's the whole background thing it's like
14:29because isn't that the thing and I mean a good fellas does it as well to a great
14:33degree that sense of trying to work out why you know what is the allure why do
14:37people do you know why do people do things that from quote respectable
14:42society would be considered to be a bad thing yeah this this actually was based
14:48on on a book by John Pearson which not many people know about called the
14:51profession of violence the rise and fall of the Kray twins and he co-wrote that
14:56when I was in Parkhurst that was their first time away for their 30-year
15:01sentence and he went on the island and he said look give me your story and if
15:07you read that you're you'll enjoy this film better because there's a there's a
15:12scene here where they're at the Rivoli Club in which is still there now in
15:18London and it's decked out lovely and they have a fight it's a bit comedy
15:24for you to look at the fight it slaps you've got these big hard men and you
15:26know and he's like you punch me you know and he's but the thing is that they
15:30can't go too close because that they are not just brothers they're twins you know
15:34that Ronnie was the was the dominant twin Reggie was totally submissive to him
15:38whether he liked it or not but I just think the way the way Tom Hardy really
15:45took on this role was was brilliant because obviously the first Kray film
15:50was by the Spandau Ballet yes it was in 1990 yeah 1990 which I loved again but
15:56this had more I think this this had more grit more rawness more realness and a
16:02bit more darker and and they didn't use a massive cast the budget wasn't huge
16:07for this type of film but the way just Tom Hardy takes a script and makes it
16:11his own I'm not gonna talk about Tom Hardy all day but in this I just think
16:14to play the two the way he did was phenomenal
16:17because I first saw was it Charles Charles Manson he played him in Bronson
16:21so Charles Bronson yeah in when in that crime film when they used the it's a sin
16:24from the Pet Shop and yeah it was it was so convincing yeah like you were saying
16:29about Bob Hoskins yeah I almost imagined that he wasn't so much acting that he
16:33was actually that character I think yeah because for Bronson in that scene
16:38you're talking about that is meant to be Rampton in Liverpool and the soundtrack
16:42was perfect the way he's walking around like a zombified shaved he said got a
16:46bit bigger but the way he did his hair he wore the the 1960 suits the swagger
16:51of Ron of Reggie sorry and then Ronnie with his waistcoat the jury I mean yeah
16:57they always say he's a method actor and I think he is he I've seen so many
17:02interviews that when he you know he's a bit of a shy interviewer but when he
17:06takes on a role he gives you everything like Bob Hoskins and people go oh he
17:11picks only these sort of films these sort of films it's a good man that
17:14knows what works yeah but it also is and you could say the same about Robert
17:18De Niro but if you know if the formula ain't broke don't fix it totally yeah
17:22and I mean to you know to talk a little bit about the new film we just done the
17:26bike I want to see this that looks amazing I mean that could go all the way
17:30I mean that's another bike of film that could go all the way but he just picked
17:33so many good films and in this particular one I quite like is all set I
17:36love things that set in London I love things yes I love Hollywood I love all
17:40the lights but I like things that are close to home and I've read so many
17:43books on these guys and when I heard it was based on John Pearson's book I
17:48thought well that's gonna be good because he's actually met them and then
17:52you know true to life he made this with these guys and fantastic yeah fantastic
17:57okay well it's time now to move on to your final chosen film and oh maybe this
18:02is a different shift in genre a star is born to look at the screen I wasn't sure
18:09which version of course no there's many there's many this would be my first film
18:13choice in if I had to make two films in life and people go oh my god I say this
18:19you know like you pick that yeah I do it's it's not based on a true story but
18:25it could be so many country western singers like the drink too much
18:30party hard their talent goes to waste and Bradley Cooper what can I say good
18:38looking guy he directed it which is his debut direction I mean no come on he
18:44starred in it he rewrote the screenplay for it and he produced it he also did
18:50the music although he got Willie Nelson's son to play guitar which many
18:54people don't know he's a great guitarist but it was Willie Nelson's
18:57guitar Willie Nelson's son played guitar and then he got she got Lady Gaga and
19:01there people were saying like what's she gonna do she's gonna flop at this you
19:05know this is not her film didn't they work I mean it is a fantastic film and
19:09then they did a live set at Glastonbury which he said I tell you what we just
19:13throw it in the film as well I mean like you know 24 nominations well it was
19:18incredible because when Lady Gaga was nominated of course it was a really
19:22tight-run thing because it was expected to be her or Glenn Close that's right
19:26wife but of course it was Olivia Colman who won yeah but and of course Barbara
19:30Streisand played this role yeah in the 1970s yeah have you seen that one yeah
19:34with Chris Christopherson playing the Bradley Cooper now Chris Christopherson
19:37one of my I love country music and I was lucky enough to see him at Black Deer a
19:40few years ago which was you know but I think he topped it and and that's given
19:45giving him all credit I think he actually topped it because he he put it
19:48a bit into the modern era but he kept it kept the the romance of country and
19:54I just thought Lady Gaga was amazing I really do I'm not a big Lady Gaga music
19:58fan in terms of musicality but in this film blew me away and and also there's a
20:05lot of controversy you know like you can see it these days they are chasing the
20:09money they're chasing the stardom and he's trying to say no you lose it again
20:12now I've been there I've done it you know he loved her she loved him but you
20:15know maybe he loved a bit more the drink was taken down and I have to say
20:20the reason also why I picked this is you've got one of my favorite actors
20:23that is Sandra Reid Sam Elliott that man never makes a bad film you know I don't
20:29know why he's not got Oscar upon Oscar he does well as a lead or as a
20:32supporting role but I just think you know if you gave him the script that guy
20:37could you know but this this is my ultimate favorite film I love the music
20:41I love the storyline I love it's the romance in me it's not with a hard and
20:45I mean yeah 24 nominations three Grammys she got the Oscar for the song and I
20:52think they had a little bit of chemistry as well which is beautiful well that
20:54always helps and that you mentioned Sam Elliott of course I think of casino I
20:57was actually at an award ceremony it was a film festival actually in the Czech
21:01Republic 2005 and Sam Elliott was sitting in the row behind me no but one
21:04of those moments you just you can't say seriously Robert Redford sitting
21:06somewhere else this is this is this is this is crazy but but also there's no
21:10way I was going to talk to him no sorry so you know is that close it yeah but
21:14tell me so so the star is born a star is born why so this version because I've
21:19seen the others yeah a long time ago yeah but this one really did work it did
21:23but do you think it was it was a huge gamble that paid off were you surprised
21:28at how good it was yes because everyone knows Streisand so you know we know the
21:32story and he didn't he didn't tamper with the story too much because why
21:35would you it's like you know but I think because he just brought a little bit of
21:39sass into it like I just think you know I just think that the way he directed it
21:46and for his first obviously he's been on so many sets he's seen what works what
21:49doesn't work he had directors probably direct him wrongly and the way he did it
21:53he said it was how he wanted to be directed if he was not directing it and
21:57for him to say that and like when he casted because he did he wanted her and
22:02he said that's like right for a meal and he said it cost him thousands like this
22:05meal and she's like I'm not sure I'll let you know he's like I don't leave me
22:09hanging it's like a date yeah and she phoned him up the next day and said I'll
22:11do it and people go like oh why would you put you know you could have gone for
22:16a lot of country artists you know to you know to play on that and I just think
22:21this topped it I mean obviously like you say everyone knows the film everyone
22:24knows it's been made three or four times isn't it but I maybe maybe it's because
22:29the chemistry maybe it's because you brought it into the modern day a little
22:32bit but again the styling was there the musicality Sam Elliott played the
22:36brother and his manager and I just loved it I really did and I can watch
22:41that film at least once a week and wouldn't get bored yeah and have you
22:44watched it many times yeah totally I probably got it I don't know I probably
22:50watch it once a month yeah yeah and if I've been to a music a country music
22:54thing it's on the next day yeah yeah I love it yeah and can you watch the other
23:00ones now you see has this made it impossible for you to go back to the
23:04the Kris Kristofferson one is this so good that it's almost like displace that
23:07one yeah now yes you're right because with the legend film I have often seen
23:12the spandau ballet boys I flitter the craze yeah the craze yeah and just
23:16compare a little bit I could even I'm a massive Kris fan great music and stuff
23:20but no I can't watch this because this is what I've sort of fallen for it's
23:24really weird it'd be interesting to see what people think because the story has
23:28not changed too much in this film which is why I like it because sometimes they
23:30might they change it a lot but I think this eclipses the rest brilliant well
23:33I'm afraid that is all the time we have for today many thanks to Jay James for
23:37joining us and being such a brilliant guest and many thanks to you all for
23:41tuning in be sure to come back and join us again at the same time next week
23:45until then that's all from us goodbye